very psalter when he was murdered in 1170. The psalter bears a 16th-century inscription attributing its ownership to Becket, but this claim had previously been dismissed as ridiculous. However, after learning of a reference to a psalter owned by Becket in a sacrists' roll from Canterbury Cathedral, de Hamel realised that the library's psalter matched the one described in the sacrists' roll. The identity of the psalter was supported by a 13th-century stained glass portrait of Becket in Canterbury Cathedral in which he cradles a similarly bound and coloured book under his left arm. Based on the workmanship of the psalter, de Hamel guesses that it was originally created for an archbishop, possibly Ælfheah of Canterbury. Although exhibitions of some of the materials are periodically held, access to the full collection of manuscripts held in Corpus Christi College is limited to scholars. The public are able to see some of the treasures of the library at open days, notably during the annual 'Open Cambridge' event, or, since the addition of the vault and new learning facilities on the ground floor has freed up room in the original library, on private tours. History The collection was begun in 1376, shortly after the college's founding, and much improved by a bequest from Matthew Parker in 1574, the college's Master between 1544 and 1553. He served as chaplain to Anne Boleyn, Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University, and Archbishop of Canterbury from 1559 to 1575. It was during this time that he formed a fine collection of manuscripts, salvaged from the libraries of dissolved monasteries. As part of his collection process, Parker employed a number of scholars, scribes, and book artisans to acquire, curate, maintain, and edit his manuscripts. Stephen Batman, one of Parker's chaplains, boasted to have collected 6,700 books over the course of four years for the Archbishop, though very few of them were selected for the library:"Among whose Bookes remayned, althoughe the moste parte according to the tyme, yet some worthy the viewe and safe kéeping, gathered wythin foure yeares, of Diuinitie, Astronomie, Historie, Phisicke, and others of sundrye Artes and Sciences (as I can truely auouche, hauing his Graces commission wherevnto his hande is yet to be séene) sixe thousand seauen hundred Bookes, by my onelye trauaile, whereof choyse being taken, he most gratiouslye bestowed many on Corpus Christi Colledge in Cambridge."In his correspondence, Parker often discussed his curatorial process. Writing